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Professional Development Courses for Educators.

Lori Gibson

M.A.

Lori Gibson, M.A., currently works for Spokane Public Schools as an elementary counselor. Lori holds a Master's in Counseling Psychology, as well as a K-12 teaching certificate. Over the past 22 years she has held positions as a counselor for North Chicago High School in Illinois and the Lake Washington School District in Kirkland/Redmond, WA. During those years she served and/or provided leadership to the LWSD Safety Committee, both districts’ critical incident teams, and the LWSD Elementary Counselor Leadership Team. She has instituted proactive, early intervention school-wide programs including Steps to Respect, Kelso's Choices, Peace Builders and Peer Mediation. Lori has also taught parent education classes and volunteered for over fifteen years in community settings with children and adolescents.

Imagine looking out on your classroom and knowing that every student has a clear, receptive mind, is engaged, and is ready to learn. Unfortunately, this is rarely what we see in our classrooms. Instead, too many students seem preoccupied, isolated, withdrawn, nervous or overwhelmed.
It is estimated that 1 out of every 5 students in America suffers from a diagnosable anxiety disorder. And it is further suggested that, unchecked, anxiety can result in school failure, social isolation and missed opportunities. The purpose of this course is for educators to increase their understanding of anxiety and learn how to support students, and their parents, who are dealing with this disorder.
This independent study course is appropriate for Pre-K through grade12 teachers, administrators, support staff and parents. Note: The book, Growing Up Brave, was written for parents, however it is an excellent resource for understanding and supporting our anxious students and their parents.

Our boys are struggling. They are academically disengaged and facing social challenges alone. What will their place will be in the wider world once they leave high school (if they even make it that far)? Let's look at the troubling symptoms our boys are presenting, and then we will pull back the curtain on their inner lives. We will look at the cultural expectations they are under, cultivate new understanding of boys and their world, and much more.

Traditional discipline plans usually frustrate chronically disruptive students and can be overkill for well- adjusted kids. Dr. Ross Greene's “Plan B” is a better approach for dealing with disruptive behavior. It assumes that even disruptive students want to succeed in school, but that they have obstacles in their lives which prevent them from being successful.

How delightful would it be if every student came to class on time, had their assignments done and did their best work? Unfortunately this is not the case. While many kids are organized, many kids are not. These disorganized kids can be disruptive; they are stuck in a downward spiral of failure and let’s face it - they drag down your school’s test scores.

If you have students with one of the Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), and you don’t know what they’re thinking or feeling, your days will be difficult – and theirs will be too. Most Pre-K through 12th grade educators have worked with ASD students already, and the prevalence of ASD is increasing. This course is an essential introduction to this puzzling disorder.

Elementary teachers! Become a technology leader for your professional team and inspire your students. Develop lessons using free online curriculum-rich resources that will engage students in every core subject. Not only will you learn to access an amazing amount of online resources, you will learn new innovative ways to apply them to your current professional assignment.

Enhance your K-12 Civil War teaching using the books and videos suggested in this course. This innovative course includes a resource file on the Civil War featuring web pages with interactive maps, lesson plans, art, music, reenactment videos, and lectures from leading scholars. Teachers will find ways to actively engage students around many of the major themes and events of this time period.

This course is based on the required text, "Qualities of Effective Teachers" by James Stronge. Stronge’s work emphasizes that the classroom teacher is a person that makes the biggest difference in studies of effectiveness. Also covered are classroom management, curriculum development, lesson delivery. follow-up checklists and ‘red flags’ of ineffective teaching.